The present invention relates to advertising at sporting events. More particularly, the invention relates to a sporting spectator safety net having provision made thereon for the display of advertising content with little or no interference with the view onto a sporting field from the spectator seating area.
As depicted in FIG. 1, protective netting 10 is commonly utilized at sporting venues 16 for protecting spectators 21 from sporting objects thrown or kicked from an athletic field 22. As shown in the figure, such a protective net 10 is typically suspended by a plurality of cables 19 from the ceiling 18 of an enclosed stadium 17 or, in the alternative, stretched between a plurality of frame structures (not shown) provided for this specific purpose. In any case, the protective net 10 generally comprises a fairly wide mesh 11 such that the spectators 21 in the stadium 17 retain a substantially unobstructed view of the goal 20 or other areas of the field 22 upon which may occur the sporting action.
Additionally, although the width of the mesh 11 will vary according to whether the protective net 10 is designed to prevent passage of small objects, such as hockey pucks, or large objects, such as footballs, it is known that forming the mesh 11 from black colored material allows the spectators 21 a substantially clear view of the field 22 even in the case of relatively fine dimension mesh 11.
While much attention has been given to the protection of spectators 21 at a sporting venue 16 through the provision of safety nets 10, Applicant knows of no efforts directed toward utilizing such safety provisions for the generation of team or sponsor revenues. In particular, Applicant has discovered that the protective nets 10 typically found at various sporting venues 16 generally represent a missed opportunity for the conveyance of advertising messages and/or promotional communications. It is therefore an overriding object of the present invention to improve over the prior art by adapting the otherwise typical protective nets 10 such that commercial speech may be incorporated into the protective net 10 with little or no detriment to the spectator""s ability to clearly view the athletic field 22. Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide such an improvement that is economical to implement and easily modified between various sporting events.
In accordance with the foregoing objects, the present invention - a mesh spectator safety netting with provision for advertising at a sporting event - generally comprises a protective net provided with an applique for the conveyance of a commercial message. In order that the spectators at a sporting venue may be presented with a marketing communication without obstruction of their view of the athletic field, the applique of the present invention generally comprises a mesh of only slightly less dimension than has the mesh of the protective net. Reflective borders may be added about the applique and or colored fibers may be used in forming the mesh in order to enhance the ability to view the advertising message from the spectator stands.
Finally, many other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant arts, especially in light of the foregoing discussions and the following drawings, exemplary detailed description and appended claims.